Monday, January 27, 2014

Altered by Gennifer Albin

Note: My review mentions stuff from the first book. And some really cool-world building aspects that I just have to gush about to let you know about the awesomeness. Read at your own risk.

Description (taken from Gennifer Albin's site):

Life. Possibility. Choice.All taken from Adelice by the Guild—until she took them back.But amid the splendid ruins of Earth, Adelice discovers how dangerous freedom can be. Hunted by soulless Remnants sent by Cormac Patton and the Guild, Adelice finds a world that’s far from deserted. Although allies are easy to find on Earth, knowing who to trust isn’t. Because everyone has secrets, especially those Adelice loves most. Secrets they would kill to protect. Secrets that will redefine each of them. Torn between two brothers and two worlds, Adelice must choose what to fight for.In this thrilling sequel to Crewel, Adelice is about to learn how tangled up her past and future really are. Her parents ran to protect her, but nothing can save her from her destiny, and once she uncovers the truth, it will change everything.

This book picks up right where the first one left off, with Adelice ripping through Arras to get to Earth. And of course, she's got the brothers, Jost and Erik, in tow. But Earth has its own set of rules, people, and time. And Adelice must fight to remember that she left her sister behind in Arras and needs to get her back.

While on Earth, Adelice meets new characters including Dante, Kincaid, and the Scientist. Some of them have ulterior motives, but they all seem to want to help her in separating Arras from Earth and saving her sister. Kincaid seems to be the man running the show on Earth, but we begin to see he's a little more creepy than he lets on. And then we find out time on Earth runs a lot slower than time on Earth. So, a lifetime spent in Arras is only about 6 or 7 years on Earth. So what timeframe do you think they're in? Just a whole lot of world-building explanations and plot continuations.

Did I enjoy this book? Absolutely!!! So many plot twists that kept me bouncing. And everyone knows I love explanations, right? Even though I don't fully understand creweling, altering and all that, I'm totally in love with this world. And the explanations, they're awesome. I mean, who's heard of a dystopian set before our time (say what)? I think the only thing I rolled my eyes at was the love triangle (but it didn't really bother me). And my only nagging query is tying to understand altering and what someone gains by doing it (because so many people want to alter Adelice).

This is truly a fun series to get into. And now I must wait for the third book. Oh how I hate waiting...